Noticed during the last heavy rainstorm that water's sneaking in around one of my living room windows. Thinking either caulk or weather stripping might fix it...but I'm not exactly handy, haha. Which one's better or easier to deal with?
Honestly, caulk's probably your best bet here. Weather stripping's more for drafts around moving parts like doors or windows that open. Caulk seals up stationary gaps pretty well, and it's not too tricky—even if you're not exactly Bob Vila, haha.
"Caulk seals up stationary gaps pretty well, and it's not too tricky—even if you're not exactly Bob Vila, haha."
Agreed, caulk is the right call here. Weather stripping won't do much for stationary gaps, as it's mainly designed for moving joints. Make sure you clean the area thoroughly before applying the caulk—dust or debris can weaken adhesion. Take your time, steady hand helps, but even if you make a bit of a mess, it's usually fixable. Good luck.
Caulk's definitely the way to go, but have you checked if there's any old caulk already there? Sometimes removing the old stuff first makes a huge difference... learned that the hard way after my first window job, lol.
Thanks for mentioning the old caulk—I hadn't even thought about checking for that. I took a closer look this morning, and sure enough, there's some cracked stuff around the edges. Guess I'll be scraping that off first. Honestly, I'm just relieved it's something manageable... homeownership keeps throwing these little surprises at me, haha. Fingers crossed this does the trick.
"Honestly, I'm just relieved it's something manageable... homeownership keeps throwing these little surprises at me, haha."
Haha, isn't that the truth? Reminds me of a client last year who had a similar issue—thought it was a major leak, but turned out to be just old caulk letting water sneak in. Once we scraped off the old stuff and applied a fresh bead of quality silicone caulk, problem solved. Just make sure you clean the surface well before applying the new caulk; it'll stick better and last longer. Good luck!
Yeah, caulking usually does the trick, but sometimes weather stripping can help too, especially if your window frame has shifted a bit over time. Had a similar issue at my own place—ended up doing both. Scraped off the old caulk, cleaned it up good, then applied new silicone. After that, added some weather stripping around the edges for extra protection. Haven't had any leaks since, even during heavy storms... might be worth considering both options while you're at it.
"especially if your window frame has shifted a bit over time."
Yeah, noticed the same thing at my place. Frame shifted just enough that caulk alone wasn't cutting it. Ended up using some foam weather stripping too—no leaks since, even with last month's heavy rain. Worth doing both imo.
Haha, glad I'm not the only one dealing with shifting frames... mine's practically doing yoga poses at this point. Foam weather stripping was a lifesaver here too, totally agree it's worth doubling up.
Gotta admit, foam weather stripping is handy, but doubling up might just be a temporary fix. Had a similar issue last year—my window frame was practically doing the limbo—and eventually realized the real culprit was structural settling. Ended up biting the bullet and re-caulking properly after tightening things up. Honestly, if your frame's pulling yoga moves, might wanna check if there's something deeper going on before you stockpile more foam strips...